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Home My WebLink AboutComm No 0044.01 - Testimony - CA-27 - PONC fund - Easements - Eminent Domain11111111111 //kIDVII 30II° NN 100//SII° Ilfl 1113 rad 112U nu, ChaIIr BJP Consulting yir°oir°off Ils,��ulh, /,'uce r'haIIr Hawaiian Electric Dr„ Ilgo IIIIIC iru°o iru°o h,�r, G �II �a,ia 11 l Molokai General Hospital Standard S„ Carr Stanford Carr Development Itaala II Ina Ilagarte Karat_ o ka Aina School Kamehameha Schools Steve IIK.eIIII'/' James Campbell Company LLC Kaiser Permanente Pulama Lana`i � a°la iru°o g it°o a°la „ 011 so n Farmer, Rancher, Landowner G Vrcgory ; II„liatria 1'ri Pietsch Properties LLC h;liira�h,liir°o IlIt,a,iair°og NAVFAC Pacific Gregg Ip 41 "II"r1Jkrlu°rl Morgan Stanley Howard Hughes Corp. "ll"oirro 11°eeaire Conservationist Iwali ,;IPriae `u;, `u;,Il aIIa Iiah Michael Spalding Realty Car 011 °NIIIlcoit Author THE TRUST FOR PUBLIC LAND'S TESTIMONY IN OPPOSITION TO COMM. NO. 44 TRANSMITTING CA -27 FOR INITIAL APPROVAL; PROPOSAL TO AMEND SECTION 10-15, PUBLIC ACCESS, OPEN SPACE AND NATURAL RESOURCES PRESERVATION FUND, TO ADD LANGUAGE TO PLACE AN EMPHASIS ON THE ACQUISITION OF EASEMENTS AND THAT THE COUNTY MAY EXERCISE EMNINENT DOMAIN TO ACQUIRE PROPERTIES AND EASEMENTS FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS FUND HAWAII COUNTY CHARTER COMMISSION 11:00 A.M., March 8, 2019 West Hawai'i Civic Center 75-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway Building A, Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i Aloha Chair Adams and Commission Members: The Trust for Public Land opposes advancing CA -27 through initial approval. The Trust for Public Land was originally involved in and supported the creation of the PONC fund through its 501(c)(4) organization, the Conservation Campaign. The Trust for Public Land thanks the staff of the PONC 2% fund and the volunteers who serve on the PONC Commission for their hard work in advancing the wishes of the voters of Hawaii County who voted for the 2% Fund. We oppose C-27 because (1) the amendment is unnecessary — the County already recognizes PONC may be used to acquire easements and is working with The Trust for Public Land and the Ala Kahakai Trail Association to acquire a conservation easement over land at Waikapuna, and (2) voluntary land conservation programs usually do not allow the use of program funds for eminent domain. The Trust for Public Land has experience with dozens of voluntarily land conservation programs at the federal, state, and local levels. For example, at the federal level, the U.S. Forest Legacy Program, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Recovery Land Acquisition Program, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Habitat Conservation Program, the NOAA Coastal Estuarine Conservation Program, the U.S. Pittman -Robertson Program (for hunting areas). At the State level, the Hawai'i State Legacy Land Conservation Program and similar open space conservation state programs across the nation. And at the local level, the PONC program and other county programs which the Trust for Public Land helped to establish in Maui County, Kaua'i County, and the City and County of Honolulu. In all of these program, use of program funds for eminent is not allowed. This is because eminent domain — the forcible condemnation and taking of private property rights for public benefit/use — is a last resort and it should only be used as a last resort. The Conservation Program Handbook — A Guide for Local Government Land Acquisition published by Sandra Tassel and The Trust for Public Land in 2007 underscores that using voter approved open space funding for condemnation is generally disfavored: "Natural resource purchases — especially with a voter -approved funding source — do not usually allow condemnation. Buying property on a strictly voluntary basis, without the possibility of condemnation coloring the negotiation, requires special listening, problem solving, and financial skills, especially if `partial interest' transactions, Comm. No. 44.1 such as conservation easements, are planned." (p. 71). The County always retains the power to condemn property if absolutely needed as a last resort (e.g., for a road, sewer, school, or utility corridor). However, PONC funds should not be tapped for forced condemnation. Rather, community dialogue and "win-win" scenarios should be pursued with PONC funding to conserve Hawai'i's natural and cultural resources. Mahalo for this opportunity to testify. Unfortunately, we will not be able to testify in person due to scheduling conflicts. Mahalo — lit Lea Hong State Director Edmund C. Olson Trust Fellow